Smelting plant.



PATBNTE'D JUNE 30, 1903 W. B. KOCH.

SMELTING PLANT.

APPLICATION TILED JAN. 30, 1902.

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No. 732,084. PATENTED JUNE 30, 1903. WI B. KOCH.

SMELTING PLANT.

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No. 732,084. PATENTBD JUNE 30, 1903. W. E. KOCH.

SMELTING PLANT.

APPLIOATION FILED JAN. 30, 1902. K0 MODEL. 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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UNTTED STATES Patented um; so, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER E. KOCH, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO UNITED STATES SULPI'IIDE FURNACE COMPANY, OF

TOLEDO, OHIO.

SMELTING PLANT.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 732,084, dated June 30, 1903. Application filed January 30, 1902. Serial No. 91,816. (No model.)

To a whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER E. KOCH, of Pittsburg, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Smelting Plant, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of a smelting plant constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a top plan View of the same, partly broken away. Fig. 3 is a top plan View of the smelting-furnace I prefor to employ, and Fig. 4 is a side elevation of such furnace.

My invention relates to the smelting of ores other than iron ores, such as copper or lead ores; and its object is to improve and make more efficient the fume-arresters employed in connection with the downtake of such smelters, and, further, to provide a cheap and simple means for fritting or cindering the dust,

' fine ores, &c., to prepare them for smelting.

The invention also relates to an improved construction for the upper part of the smelting-furnace and to the arrangement of the fritting-furnace and its connection with the other parts.

In the drawings, 2 represents a smeltingfurnace, the lower portion of which may be of any ordinary type, with the surrounding bustle-pipe 8, twyers 4, tap or outlet 5, and forehearth 6. The upper portion of this furnace is of polygonal form, and I have shown it as of hexagonal shape, each side of the hexagon having a vertically-sliding door 7, moving in side guides 8 8 at the corners of the top, each door arranged to be lowered by a chain 9, which may pass over a suitable pulley and be provided with a counterweight. By this construction I obtain a free large charging-opening on all sides of the top, so that the ores may be charged in from any side. The dome-shaped top 10 of the smelter may be of the usual form.

The downtake-flue 11 of the smelting-furnace leads to a dust-catcher or fume-arrester 12, the particular form of which forms no part of my present invention, the dust-catcher shown and described being described and claimed in the copending application of myself and John W. McDonald, Serial No. 91,842, filed January 30, 1902. In this form of dust catcher, as shown, the flue 11 leads downwardly into the upper end of the chamber 13, having a curtain-wall 14. In the lower part of this chamber below the curtain-wall is a trough 15, extendinglengthwise of the chamberand containingafeed-screw16. Thewall 14 is in the form of an arch, with a lower opening 17 leading to a large chamber 18, containing a portion of a blast-heater. This blast-heater consists of upper and lower boxes 19, connected by pipes 20, the blast passing from the box 21 nearest the furnace through a connection 22 to the bustle-pipe 3.

In the chamber 18 and between the lower boxes are located collecting-troughs 23, each containing feed screws 24. A collectingtrough 25 extends along the ends of the troughs 25 and 23 and receives the dust and fine ore discharged therefrom by the screws, and the trough 25 also contains a feed-screw 26, by which the material is moved endwise into a downwardly-inclined feed-channel 27, leading into the intermediate portion of a fritting-furnace28. Anoutlet-channel29 for hot gases and products of combustion leads from the upper part of this fritting-furnace into the chamber 13 and is preferably so arranged that the hot gases cross the stream issuing from the downtake 11.

I have found in practice that by leading hot gases into contact with the products from the smelting-furnace the fine ores and dust, fumes, &c., are caused to drop, and the gases will thus be quickly cleansed of solids. This action is so complete on account of admitting the heated gases that little or no dust or ore is found in the last troughs of the chamber 18.

The flitting-furnace is preferably provided with a cone-shaped grate 30 and wit-h a belland-hopper mechanism 31 for charging finelydivided fuel, ores, &c. The cinderedore from the fritting-furnace is drawn out through the discharge-hole 32 into a receptacle;33, .from' which an endless bucket conveyer34 lifts it to and drops it into the smelter. p

The chambers 13 and 18 form a portion of the blast-heater, the other portion of which consists of a chamber 35, similar to chamber 18 and containing similar sets of boxes and pipes, the boxes being smaller and the pipes fewer in number, as the blast-gases increase in volume as they are heated and require a larger area in the passage of the heating apparatus. I have shown the boiler 36 as having an outlet 37, leading into chamber 35, which is connected at one end with the chamber 13, the products from the boiler uniting with those from the smelter and passing to the stack-flue 38.

39 is the pump or blower for forcing air into the first box of the series of heaters in chamber 35.

To drive the several feed-screws 16 and 23, I extend their shafts and connect them by bevel-gears 40,with a common shaft 41, having toothed wheel 42, intermeshing with idler 43, which engages toothed wheel 44 upon the shaft 45, which drives the main longitudinal feed-screw.

In the operation of the plant the smeltingfurnace may be operated in the usual manner, the blast therefor being heated in the heating apparatus which utilizes the waste heat of the smelter and that of the boiler. The dust and fine ores which are collected in the dust-catcher and fume-arrester, as well as the fine ores which are not adapted for use in the smelter, are fritted or cindered in the side furnace, and thus brought into proper condition for feeding to the smelter. I have found that by feeding the dust, &c., directly from the dust-catcherint-o the fritting-furnace the ore will be practically red-hot as it enters the furnace and requires little additional heat to agglomerate it, and this heat may be obtained by the use of fine coke-dust, bark, or other refuse, which accummulates about smelting plants. The fritted ores are lifted to the smelter and fed thereinto. The gases from the fritting-furnace greatly assist in the action of the dust-catcher by causing a quick deposit of the solids, and the heat of these gases is further utilized in heating the blast,

The advantages of my invention flow from the use of the fritting-furnace, which enables the fine ores to be utilized without the expensive and slow operation of briqueting; further, from the utilizing of the gases from the smelter, the fritting-furnace, and the boiler for heating the blast; also, from the direct conveying of the heated ore and dust deposits into the fritting-furnace, and the action of the heated gases from this furnace in causing the deposit of the dust; and, further, from the polygonal shape of the upper part of the smelting-furnace, which gives large area of feed-openings and allows the material to be charged on any sidedesired from the charging-floor. (Shown in Fig. 1.)

Many variations may be made in the form and arrangement of the fritting-furnace, the dust-catcher, and blast-heater, the smelter, and the connections without departing from my invention as claimed.

I claim- 1. The combination with a stack smeltingfurnace of a dust-catching chamber connected with the offtake of said furnace, a frittingfurnace adjacent to and arranged to receive the heated material from the dust-catching chamber and mechanism for feeding fuel into the fritting-furnace in contact with the heated material; substantially as described. I

2. The combination with a smelting-furnace, of a dust-catching chamber connected to its offtake, a flitting-furnace, and a channel leading from the dust-catching chamber to the fritting-furnace and arranged to convey the heated material thereto, said frittingfurnace having a top opening with charging mechanism; substantially as described.

3. The combination with a smelting-furnace, of a dust-catcher connected thereto, a fritting-furnace of gas-producer form having a grate, a feed-channel leading from the dustcatcher into the fritting-furnace above the grate, and top charging mechanism for feeding fuel into the fritting-furnace; substantially as described.

4:. The combination with a smelting-furnace of stack form having a dust-catcher, of a fritting-furnace arranged to discharge heated gases into the dust-catcher to meet the gases entering from the down-comer of the smelting-furnace, the fritting-furnace being arranged to agglomerate the material; substantially as described.

5. The combination with a smelting-furnace, of a dust-catcher connected to its offtake, said dust-catcher having a curtain-wall, a fritting-furnace adjacent to and arranged to receive the heated material from the dustcatcher, and a return-channel from the fritting-furnace into the dust-catcher and arranged to discharge the hot gases from the fritting-furnace across the stream of gases entering from the ofitake; substantially as described.

6. The combination with a smelting-furnace, of a dust-catcher connected to its downtake, a fritting-furnace having a feedingchannel leading from the dust-catcher, and an outlet for hot gases leading from the fritting-furnace back into the dust-catcher chamber; substantially as described.

7. A smelting-furnace having a combined dust-catcher, fume-arrester and blast-heater connected to its downtake, a fritting-furnace having a feeding-channel leading from the dust-catcher, and an outlet for hot gases leading from the fritting-furnace into the dustcatcher chamber; substantially as described.

8. A smelting-fn rn ace having a d net-catcher, a flitting-furnace adjacent to the smeltingfurnace and arranged to receive the ores from into the dust-catcher, and a. conveyer arranged to take the heated and fritted material to the smelting-furnace substantially as the dust-catcher. and an elevator for condescribed. 5 ducting the fritted ores to the smelter; sub- In testimony whereof I have hereunto set stantially as described. I my hand.

9. Asnneltin "-furnace havin adust-catcher and blast-heat er connected t; its downtake, i WALTER KOCH a. flitting-furnace having a feeding-channel Witnesses:

IO leading to it from the dust-catcher, an outlet H. M. CQRWIN, for hot gases leading from the flitting-furnace L. A. CONNER, Jr. 

